TaxIntellilytics Stories

The dispatch book · File 011 · last verified 28 October 2026

TaxIntellilytics Stories · The Dispatch Book · taxintellilyticsstories.com/research/reform-tracker/TIL-REF-2026-011 · printed

File 011 · from MoFPED · to MoFPED and Parliament

Adjust the PAYE thresholds.

111days from recommendation to lawIncome Tax (Amendment) Act 2026, signed 20 Aug 2026

Evidence slip

Sent01.05.26ReviewedLaw20.08.26Done

From MoFPED · to MoFPED (policy; presents tax bills) and Parliament (enactment) · PIT

“Adjust PAYE thresholds.”

Executive Summary, Table 1 policy reforms, pdf p.ix

The desks

Sent01.05.26Domestic Revenue Mobilisation Strategy 2025/26 to 2029/30 (D…
Reviewed
no evidence
Law20.08.26Income Tax (Amendment) Act 2026 (Act 21 of 2026)
Funded
no evidence
Under way
no evidence
Done
no evidence
Evaluated
no evidence

Sent, 1 May 2026. Recommended in Domestic Revenue Mobilisation Strategy 2025/26 to 2029/30 (DRMS2) (Executive Summary, Table 1 policy reforms, pdf p.ix).

Law, 20 August 2026. Income Tax (Amendment) Act 2026 raised the tax-free band to UGX 4.02 million a year from 1 July 2026 (register ITA-2026-PAYE).

The route slip

From finding to result, link by link

Each box is one link of the reform chain. ✓ documented; ? claimed but not documented; · no evidence yet, with what it needs. This file stops at: Outcome.

  1. FindingDocumentedDRMS2 lists adjusting PAYE thresholds under fairness and progressivity.
  2. ProblemDocumentedThe PAYE threshold was unchanged since 2012.
  3. RecommendationDocumented"Adjust PAYE thresholds." (MoFPED, Executive Summary, Table 1 policy reforms, pdf p.ix)
  4. Legal powerDocumentedPFM Act 2015 s.8 (the Minister presents tax and revenue bills to Parliament); opened, PFMA-S8
  5. InstitutionNamedMoFPED (policy; presents tax bills) and Parliament (enactment)
  6. ActionDocumentedenacted in the Income Tax (Amendment) Act 2026 (register ITA-2026-PAYE)
  7. OutputDocumentedthreshold UGX 4.02 million a year
  8. OutcomeNo evidence yetneeds an outcome measure with a baseline
  9. EvaluationNo evidence yetneeds an evaluation with a stated method

In the amendment register

Became law 111 days after this recommendation

Tax-free band of employment income raised to UGX 4.02 million a year

Income Tax (Amendment) Act 2026 · signed 20 August 2026 · in force 1 July 2026 · implementation: pending verification

Open the register's case file ITA-2026-PAYE →

Why it was recommended

Finding. DRMS2 lists adjusting PAYE thresholds under fairness and progressivity.

Problem. The PAYE threshold was unchanged since 2012.

Strength of the evidence behind it: high.

Note. The same change answers the World Bank's recommendation (TIL-REF-2026-001). Project 6 rebuilt the UGX 149 bn estimate: reproducible on a survey-based model; higher on URA's base (see A Hundred Pay Packets). That is a finding, not a change of status.

Who has the power to act

MoFPED (policy; presents tax bills) and Parliament (enactment). Legal power checked: PFM Act 2015 s.8 (the Minister presents tax and revenue bills to Parliament); opened, PFMA-S8.

Sources

  • Domestic Revenue Mobilisation Strategy 2025/26 to 2029/30 (DRMS2)
    MoFPED · 2026-05-01 · pages cited per record
  • Income Tax (Amendment) Act 2026 (Act 21 of 2026)
    Parliament of Uganda · 2026-08-20 · PDF p.2; assented 20 Aug 2026, in force from 1 Jul 2026